Robin Söderling saves Roland Garros

Good old Robin Söderling has saved Roland Garros, this might sound like hyperbole, but in reality it is justified due to the ridiculous level of dominance by Nadal on the Parisian clay. He had won 4 titles in a row going for a Borg record, but the man we like to call "the Toad" stopped it. The fact that is was from such a surprising individual made the win even better and it made worldwide headlines as one of the first stories in the global news. The result has created such a buzz around the event which hasn't been seen for years, this coming upon Novak Djokovic's defeat against Phillip Kohlschreiber in the previous round.


What makes it even better is that Söderling and Nadal aren't exactly friendly with each other, a bit of spice is never a bad thing. Söderling is very direct and calls it how he sees it, he isn't there to make friends. Nadal's comments after the match were definitely not in the image of a gracious loser, that is usually the way with him.

Here is the classic imitation of Nadal's timewasting rituals in between points





Onto Nadal's complaints about hitting the ball short. Well there were some good reasons for this, a guy called Söderling playing aggressive and attacking tennis, using his serve well to open the court up. Once he was able to do that, then he pounded his forehand and attacked Nadal's forehand, while it's a great weapon, a player has to go there to get short replies, but it has to be done with power and precision. The Toad was able to do this and as he was able to put pression on Nadal and rushing him, therefore leading Nadal to hit shorter replies and Söderling was able to punish these short balls with the contempt they deserved.

Söderling established the pattern, but the real question was whether he was able to implement the plan for the whole match. He had a few lapses in concentration, but was in control of his own destiny, through his aggressive play. The thing with Söderling is the talent has never been in question, but the mental application has as he has had meltdowns in the past and major ones, but working with Norman has changed that. It was a great result for tennis that Söderling won this match and apart from Nadal fans or people without perspective, will see the atmosphere and anticipation that it has created around the event.

Interview





Now onto to the other 7 players left in the quarter finals.

Davydenko : He has been under the radar even more than usual. An underrated player when he is playing very well, lightning fast footwork and very crisp timing on the groundies which rush the opponent into error, as he cuts down their time. He does have the odd problem on serve and if he is off, he can be quite off. He has been impressive in his last two matches against Wawrinka and especially against Verdasco, where he showed his limitations off. Interesting match with the Toad next, he has struggled against him in the past, but he has won a GS quarter final, whereas Söderling hasn't.

Murray : Highest seed in the section, but probably the weakest claycourter out of the four. Has had a good event and the last start against Cilic was a very solid showing, he has improved all round and listening to Corretja has helped his game. Yes, he some glaring weaknesses on the clay, but they are harder to expose, as he has improved his overall game. Cilic made some dumb errors in the first 2 sets at vital moments, but the best players step up when needed and this is the group Murray belongs to. Had an escape against Starace, but that isn't a bad thing. Gonzalez will love his chances on this surface against Murray, but if he is badly off, then Dunblane will chop him.

Gonzalez : Easy so far for him, dispatched the players easily as he should have. The forehand is awesome and even the backhand is stepping up to the plate, but with Murray that side is going to come under a lot of pressure. Gonzo has the weapons to exploit Murray on clay. The serve while not quick, he gets quality angles on it and if he gets a high percentage in, then he can open the court up and run Murray around with the forehand that is overloaded with spin and pace.

The bottom half matches, well Federer was so tight against Haas, it was horrible to watch, but he was able to get through in 5 sets from 2 sets down, while not playing well at all. The pressure is really on him, as this is his great chance to win the only GS he hasn't. Interestingly there has been a press ban by the Federer camp, so only interviews he will give are the usual press conferences and the on court interview,

Monfils and Roddick : This was a highly entertaining match that started very late, due to the chicks going late. First decent player Roddick has played and Monfils isn't losing to Roddick on clay, unless severely injured. Monfils looked comfortable in this match, defending well as he usually does, hitting the odd aggressive shot, he was able to convert his break point chances whereas Roddick didn't have a great rate. As the weather got darker, so did Roddick's mood and he was playing to try and get the match suspended due to darkness. Roddick was bitching to the umpire Enric Molina saying "what was it like when the match started and what is it like now"? Tournament referee McEwan was there as well keeping an eye on things, as the changeover came to an end. Monfils walked past with a big smirk on his face laughing at Roddick. Then when he turned around, Roddick mouthed off and said "you're not that good to be that cocky". I think that is what is known as the pot calling the kettle black. Monfils dropped his bundle for a short time, he got it back together and was able to run the match out in straight sets before the darkness set in.

Tandil man del Potro too steady for Tsonga, still lacks variation big time, but his one dimension is good. His opponent is Boredo, so for the good of the game del Potro needs to win this one.

Great that Söderling, the most unlikely of people to beat Nadal has breathed life into this event again.